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Sládek, Jiří
5 articles of this author have been cited in the European Press Review so far.
For Merkel it's about prestige
The German Bundestag votes today on plans to bolster the EU bailout fund, the ESFS. That a majority will vote in favour is considered a sure thing because the opposition Social Democrats and the Greens have already signalled their approval. But it remains unclear whether Chancellor Merkel's liberal-conservative coalition will be able to achieve the necessary majority of 311 votes without the help of the opposition. The business paper Hospodářské noviny sees the vote as a major test for the chancellor's prestige: "Merkel needs a satisfactory result. To achieve it, more MPs from her coalition government must vote in favour than MPs from the opposition. She is counting on this. But to be on the safe side she has already said that a less positive result would be no reason to propose a vote of confidence. ... But even if the bailout fund is approved in other Eurozone countries it will hardly be met with enthusiasm. Analysts say the plan comes too late and doesn't cover the risks posed by weak economies like Spain and Italy."
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More from the press review on the subject » EU Policy, » Domestic Policy, » Fiscal Policy, » Germany, » Europe
Election debacle for Merkel
With the precarious election of Christian Wulff as German federal president, decided on Wednesday after three rounds of voting, German Chancellor Angela Merkel reached a low point in her political career, business paper Hospodářské noviny comments: "For Merkel it was a tough blow. Although the role of the head of state in Germany is largely ceremonial the election was seen as a test of the chancellor's authority. That test went thoroughly wrong for her. Although the ruling coalition had the majority [in the Federal Assembly] the chancellor's favourite Wulff was unable to obtain a victory in the first two rounds. ... The elections in the German state of North Rhine-Westphalia were already a serious defeat for Merkel and hurt her popularity. ... The Germans are ceasing to trust her, ceasing to believe that Merkel is the person best suited to solve the economic problems."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Elections, » Germany
A disconcerting signal for Europe
Europe's future will be at stake when a new president is elected in Germany today, Wednesday, comments business paper Hospodářské noviny: "Merkel has reason to be nervous. Any complication would reaffirm the lack of cohesion in the coalition and weaken her position. There is much at stake. Only if the government camp is able to push through its candidate Christian Wulff in the first round will Merkel be able to relax and turn her attention to foreign policy and the single European currency once more. ... At a time when Europe needs resolute leaders to guide it out of the crisis, even a minor hiccup in Berlin would be a disconcerting signal. The rest of Europe is therefore following this presidential election closely."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Elections, » Germany
A predictable changeover of power
For the business newspaper Hospodářské noviny the changeover of power in Germany's Social Democratic Party comes as no surprise: "The historically poor poll results have forced the SPD to take action. Now Frank-Walter Steinmeier and Franz Müntefering, two former confidants of ex-Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, have been brought in to end this downwards spiral. The outgoing party leader Kurt Beck, whom Germans consider too unpredictable, has been blamed for the decline. Above all they accuse him of constant manoeuvring in the question of cooperation with the extreme left at a state level. ... The SPD feels its opponents are pushing it into a corner. With her social policies Chancellor Angela Merkel is wooing away the party's voters from the centre. Meanwhile, the Marxist Left Party is successfully poaching voters from the left periphery of the SPD. In Saarland the Left has taken over the SPD in the opinion polls. The question is how to deal with these developments."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Germany
Regional elections in Hesse and Lower Saxony
Jiří Sládek comments: "These elections were basically a popularity test for next year's federal parliamentary elections, particularly for the [Christian Democratic] Union and the SPD [Social Democrats], partners in the current grand coalition. The competitors leaned on populist themes in their campaigns. The conservatives milked issues of domestic security and tough measures against immigrants. The left emphasized minimum wages. Voters were swayed by the latter. … The SPD now can return to the federal scene with self-confidence, and present more demands for easing the pain caused by social reforms, which up to now have been successful."
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More from the press review on the subject » Domestic Policy, » Germany
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